American Idol winner and Blue Springs native David Cook sang the John Lennon classic "Happy Xmas (War is Over)" at Rockefeller Center early this month. It was a gorgeous rendition -- except for one thing:
Fans of the Christmas classic might have noticed something kind of important missing. As Roger Catlin, a vigilant TV writer for the Hartford Courant, noted:
The most shocking thing about "Christmas in Rockefeller Center," an event that's usually benign holiday fun, wasn't the amount of people in the show whose parts were pre-recorded (including Britney Spears, Miley Cyrus, Beyonce, the Jonas Brothers, and probably Faith Hill).
It was the neutering of a John Lennon song sung as part of the event.
We wish Cook would have been able to sing the whole song, as it was meant to be sung. We also wish more than a couple of the 220 fans who gushed variations of "he's so cute!" and "he's so AWESOME!" in the comments (at least on this YouTube post; there are a few others) had noticed the missing ending.Cook, for his part, seemed pretty glum about it and ended his number by saying, probably spontaneously, "Thank you guys. Come home soon."
-- C.J. Janovy
Showing 1-12 of 12
Hey, everyone--
Thanks to reader Pat who let me know that Roger Catlin has updated his original post. Check it here:
http://blogs.courant.com/roger...
Well said, Renee. David Cook is a real class act and definitely has the nerve to stand up for what he believes in. I love and admire both his literal and figurative voice. Go, DAVID COOK! I can't wait to see you in 2009!
Don't y'all know? David Cook just ain't the Neutering type! How could anyone have thunk such a thing? DC is not only an incredibly talented musician, singer and all-round entertainer...not only a hott hott blazin' sexy man, but also a real stand up guy who does care about real issues, like the war, like cancer, like family, etc. When you listen to David's music, you are entering the NEUTERING-FREE ZONE. Just so's y'all know!
Merry Xmas. War is over. If you want it!
David was asked to perform acoustically. As stated, this is his favorite Christmas song, and he performed a wonderful version (especially since he was fighting a bad cold). He sang and accompanied himself on guitar, while his guitarist, Neal, performed an instrumental 'war is over' part, which I enjoyed very much.
I'd point out that we are in the last (thank you god) vestiges of a lame duck administration that promoted the politics of fear and questioned the patriotism of anyone who disagreed with any pablum they dispensed. The lyingest liars who ever lied.
I don't for a minute think that the impact of the last eight years isn't still reverberating through something as benign as the Christmas tree lighting.
I for one am just glad he chose that song. And sang it live. And when I read today that he had put those very sentiments "War is Over" on the back of a ornament sold for charity purposes, I thought "smart fellow."
Sometimes the message has to come in more subverted ways. Thankfully on 1-20-09 we will celebrate the end of an error.
I think it also needs to be noted that David will be travelling with the USO in January to entertain the troops, so I don't think his commitment to, and support of, our soldiers fighting in the war can be questioned. I also don't necessarily think a Christmas tree lighting ceremony is an appropriate place to make overly controversial political statements. I think his choice of song was perfect. It has plenty of meaning even without the chorus. And, as someone already noted, everyone over thirty is well aware of the chorus and didn't need to hear the words to feel their impact.
One of David's former bandmates from his early band, Axium, died in the Iraq war, and David's favorite t-shirt is the one that reads "Geeks for Peace." Although he told People magazine it's his favorite because he's "a geek," it's pretty clear its message is very important to him. As an "American Idol," he has to walk a very fine line between speaking what's on his heart and mind and not burning the hand that's feeding him.
The Christmas ornament he signed for a charity auction on Ebay had a "hidden message" on its back: "John Lennon Said It Best: HAPPY XMAS (WAR IS OVER?)."
As to the silly comments on the YouTube video, most of those were, no doubt, from young kids who may not be familiar with the song. Anybody over 30 didn't need David to sing those words to hear them clearly.
We (me and 2 other friends) noticed it alright. We thought it had something to do with the musical arrangement (Tiemman's spanish guitar) but that it was cool he found a way to keep the focus on the sentiment of the song by throwing in those parting words. Everybody who was there caught what he meant.
I don't think it's odd Cook said "Come Home Soon". The message in that sentence seems pretty clear to me - "Stop the war, bring back our soldiers." which is like saying "War Is Over, If You Want It"
Maybe someone with power didn't want him to sing that last part of the song, but Cook wanted to sing that song, because of its meaning, so he said that at the end to pass the song's message, even if he couldn't sing that last part.
He stick to it and found a way keep it meaningful.
That's my opinion.
It WAS a GORGEOUS rendition. And, I don't believe for one minute that David just decided to shirk the "controversial" lyrics WAR is over if you want it... THere are Powers THat Be to contend with when it's not your own show!
David is a pretty socially aware person, from what I've seen and read and I think he just took the opportunity at the end of the song to give thanks to the troops since he couldn't sing his own favorite christmas song as it was originally intended.
David seems like a pretty socially aware person AND he said in a past interview that "Happy Christmas" was his favorite xmas song. I highly doubt that he just chucked the controversial "War is over if you want it" part on his own. There are the Powers that Be, after all.
I was glad that he was able to inject his own thoughts at the end, though with his words to the troops.
Even though I'd like to give D.C. the benefit of the doubt, he doesn't look glum or miffed at all to me. Perhaps he didn't sing the kiddy-voice refrain because of time constraints or some musical reason. But it is odd that he throws in that "come home soon, guys."
The only thing I'd speculate for sure with this video is that it DEFINITELY looked like that America's Got Talent boob was going to eat Al Roker like a yule log.
like
dislike
